2017 was the Year of Talk. 2018 is the Year of Voice.

We’ve been living in a time of talk. The chatter has been constant: people speaking many words and a lot of them empty, angry, impotent. Television, radio, the internet – everywhere, there are lots of words and very little voice.

But talk and voice are not the same.

A sabbatical and the Big Question

It’s been many months since I wrote a newsletter or blog post. I’ve been on a sabbatical and while I’ve missed communicating with you, I’ve spent the time researching, processing, and integrating. I kept asking myself one big question: What is the world asking of me?

As I witnessed current events and culture, I heard lots of talk, but an absence of presenced voice. I was fascinated (and saddened) by the chatter – what I call “voice without grounding.” In life and in business, many women, and men, were speaking but disconnected from their authentic voices. You hear it or read it on social media: the anger, the blame, the projection.

The effects of this on communication, conversation and business is not only non-productive but damaging. I wanted to learn more about what was happening so I started doing deeper research around voice, my life’s work, and how voice shows up for women in their lives and work.

A study of voice

Over the last year I interviewed women about voice. I asked questions like:

What does “voice” mean to you?
When did you become aware of your voice?
Where does that voice come from?
How do you distinguish between voice that comes from ego or fear and that of your deeply presenced voice?
Are you able to use your deeply presenced voice in your work?

What I’ve learned from these interviews has been astounding and I’ll be sharing more with you in future posts.

As you sail into the New Year

I invite you to connect with your voice, the one that is deeply presenced. It’s what I call sacred voice. When you tap into your sacred voice you begin to see the holy thread that runs through your voice, your vision and your vocation. A thread that I feel called to help women weave into the fabric of their lives.

The planet is in desperate need of women inspired, called and speaking truth to the world. I invite you to join me on this evolving journey.

Until we meet again, I share these words that speak to the urgency of connecting to your sacred voice and weaving that into your work:

“If you bring forth what is within you,
what you bring forth will save you.
If you do not bring forth what is within you,
what you do not bring forth will destroy you.”

– Gnostic Gospel of Thomas

Wishing you wild blessings in 2018. May you speak with your sacred voice. And may you hear your calling and begin to bring it forward in this New Year.